Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1887-10-30
FOR THE MIKADO.
EDISON PLANT. COSTING se5O,oOO, BEING
PUT UP IN SPAIN.
An Elaborate Plan for Illuminating q Royal Palace
and the Streets Of q City-Marysieas Effects
from C6!Ored Lights Under Water.

IN
ity. to furnish the imperial palace and the
city of Toxic with an Edison electric light
ing system, says the New York JoHrnd!
Mr.. Edison has constructed what is proba.
bly the most elaborate plant Of the kind in
the world. A year ago an electric lighting
company, composed entirely OF japanese,
was formed in Toxic (the city formerly
called Yeddo), and s. Yasbima was elected
its president; Prof. Ishiouke Fujioka, who
IVES educated with the Sismens in Paris,
and subsequently, given q chair in the Im-
perial college OF Japan and made the chief
electrician of the empire, was appointed
electrical engineer OF the new company.
He made careful MAPS of the city aud was
preparing to start for Europe to purchase n
plant, when an imperial order was given
that the palace of M~utsuhito, the miksdo,
must also be lighted.
This placed mechanical aud engineering
difficulties in the way OF the new company
which appeared 10 lie ~insurmountable, No
building which contained a boiler or an en-
CINE could be built within a mile Of tie
great cluster of bamboo and silk structures
which form the palace on account OF the
danger of fire, the light bamboo walls OF
japanese structures OF ali kinds being ex-
ceedingly intiammable. How to overcome
this distance WAS the question confronting
the company.
Prof. Fujioka ard Mr.. Yashima at once
started Tor Europe, and all the great cleo
tricsl engineers Of France, Germany and
England were consulted. Many European
experts went 10 Toxic and looked over the
ground, but were unable to suggest any
plan that was practicable, aud fiually the
Japanese agents were reluctantly referred
to Thomas A. Edison, the American cleo
~tricinu, who can do
ANYTHING WITH ELECTRICITY HE WANTS.
Messrs. Fujioka and Iashsmi reached
New York in the spring. Time was slip
ping away from them. The imperial or
der was that the palace should be lighted
by November Is, 1857, the Mikado's birth
day, and they had alre..dy spent six months
OF the year without accomplishing any
thing The Edison company was at once
consulted and engineers in charge OF the
wizard electric lighting works saw no par
ticular difficulty in the problem presented,
and so perfect were the survey plans made
BY Prof. Fujioka that IL was deemed I'M
necessary to send n man to Toxic to per-
sonally inspect the plant.
Work was o begun on the plans, and
in q month the Japanese ~otliciI had the
satisfaction of seeing every plan and design
completed and estimates of the cost made,
contracts amounting 10 nearly $3.50, 900
were signed and the last of the elaborate
electrOlies for the palace have been
shipped.
The clectroliers ordered are the most
elaborate that had been constructed up
to the time the order was given, bnt in
some way Jay Gould heard of the Mi
kado's plans and ordered several which
are lust as handsome for his own home.
The principal apartments TO be lighted
are the entrance hall, the Empress recep-
ton room, the east and west dining room,
the inner vefanda, the west waiting Room,
the private west aud south waiting rooms,
the Princes and ministers To0ms, His
Maiesty's study rooms, His Majesty's bath
room, the main and private dining rooms,
the east and west main entrance halls, and
the long lines of corridors in the Palace,
with several smaller apartments. Be.
sides all these, the grounds and the lake,
which are very elaborate, are nlso TO be
lighted.
This demands over sixty electroliers of
most elaborate design and all different, be-
side an Innumerable number OF brackets,
ne vel post and standing lights for halls,
corridors and grounds.
The designs arc made for electr0liers Of
three different classes. Some are stately
and architecturally constructed, others are
of a delicate, flowing, flowery etyle, in
which silver, gold and deliberately cnt
crystal mingled, and Others are what IL
artistically known as n robust and truth
iul' interlacing of scroll work. They arc
glistening masses OF gold and silver, min
gled with the brilliant colors which oxida.
ton produces on these metals, with which
beautifully cut crystal interlaces in every
conceivable form. Most of the globes are
of white cut glass, but some of them are
ruby, crimson, emerald, Tiolet, sapphire,
topaz, amethyst and other colors.
Most of these colored globes are TO go
in the gardens, around the lake OF in the
Mikado's bath room. When this apart
ment Is lighted the effect will be very
beautiful. The electrolier resembles the
one in the private room of the empress,
and its ruby and violet globes shed a soft
light over a toilet room hung with silk OF
Around the walls are brackets having
white and colored globes that cast sunset
colored shadows.
ON THE TESSELATED MARBLE FLOoRs.
In the centre Of the apartment is the
bath, a marble basin thirty or forty feet
in diameter, and here a wonderful effect
is produced by clusters Of different col
ored lamps placed under the water.
In one place the little lake is violet, 10
another green, in another blue or red or
gold, and when the water is agitated the
intermingling Of the colors produces au
effect undreamed Of even In fairy land.
Similar effects are produced in the lakes
Of the gardens and by placing white aud
colored lamps amid the foliage Of the
tropical trees with which the gardens
abound.
In all there are about 1900 lamps in the
palace and another 1000 will be placed
there. II took SID, 800 feet Of wire cable,
most Of it being nine wire cable, 10 put up
the palace plant, beside a mile Of very
heavy copper conductor which runs from
the station in Toxic TO the palace. This
conductor is o~fspnusual dimensions, a. a
high motive power is necessary to run a
plant at a long distance from q station,
and as absolute safety was considered Of
greater Importance than cost, this form
was used.
The plant itself consists Of fourteen
Edison 5O0-light dynamos with their en-
gines and boilers, and IL in capable Of fur
nishing from 1000 to 5000 lights. The
entire city Of Toxic will be lighted in adj
dition 10 the palace, and il will be, when
completed, q Of the most extensive
plants "a existence.
1t will be operated by japanese engineers
and workmen, and Is the irt Of many Of
a similar nature that are IN be placed in
the japanese Islands. The contract was
secured w the Ellison company after the
most active and bitter competition from
European firms.